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Book Review

REVIEW: Sealed With a Kiss by Rachael Lucas

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Sealed with a Kiss, so called because it is set on an island where there are many cute seals, is the perfect summer contemporary to take with you on holiday whilst you’re lying by the pool, or sunbathing in your garden (that’s if Britain ever sees sunshine!). Lucas is a name you definitely need to watch out for in adult contemporary.

Hooked from the first page, the novel tells the story of Kate who has just separated from her long-term boyfriend and is looking for a job. When she sees a job for a Girl Friday on a remote island called Auchenmor in Scotland, she doesn’t realise just what she’s taken on. Kate then has to deal with the fact that on such a small island there are no secrets, scheming ex-girlfriends and an injured seal. What more could you wish for in a book?!

As you know, I primarily read YA, so Sealed with a Kiss was a really nice change because it’s an adult novel. I think there’s a lot of YA crossover potential and I’d have no trouble handing it to a YA. It’s by far one of the best adult contemporaries I’ve read, up there with the likes of Katie Fforde.

The main character, Kate, charmed me right from the start. She’s clumsy, falling at her boss’ feet the first time she meets him, but she’s also devoted and caring. Kate is the kind of person you’d love to be friends with.

There were also such brilliant secondary characters that all had their own pasts that added a familiarity to the story, like Susan and Jean.

Sealed with a Kiss is definitely a book that will stay with you long after you put it down. I’m looking forward to re-reading it again sometime in the near future!

 

Book in a Tweet: Cute, romantic, and a must-read for any contemporary fan! You won’t want to miss out on this book!

Book Review UKYA Uncategorized

REVIEW: The Year of the Rat by Clare Furniss

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The Year of the Rat is a poignant and thought-provoking novel that discusses themes of grief and dealing with the death of a parent and how one goes about leading a normal life after that.

After hearing Furniss talk at an event, and hearing part of The Year of the Rat being read, I couldn’t wait to start it. I didn’t know an awful lot about it, but I had an inkling that I would love it, and I really did.

Losing somebody close to you must be one of the worst feelings in the world. For Pearl there is the added factor of a baby sister to look after, a sister who reminds her of her mother who died in pregnancy with ‘The Rat.’

The Year of the Rat is going to be a book I recommend to a lot of people because of it’s emotional depth and ability to hook the reader into Pearl’s story. There are psychological themes within The Year of the Rat – the reader unsure whether Pearl is actually seeing her mother’s ghost or if she is fabricating her to deal with the grief she is going through. The emotional depth really makes the novel stand out because it all felt so real; it was as if Pearl was living inside me and voicing the thoughts I’ve had in the past.

I feel as if there isn’t anything quite like The Year of the Rat released at the moment so if you’re looking for originality this is definitely for you.

Pearl isn’t always a likeable character and I often found myself questioning why she did particular things, but this is what makes the book so magic and, if this even makes sense, makes Pearl even easier to like.

The Year of the Rat is such a good book, and Furniss an author you really need to watch out for. If her debut is this stunning, I can’t wait to read her future novels.

Book Review UKYA

7 Reasons to read Keep the Faith by Candy Harper

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I read Have a Little Faith last month and craved a sequel so badly so I was mega excited when I received Keep the Faith to review. It saved me from a lot of pain!Keep the Faith carries on where Have a Little Faith left off and, let me tell you, it was even better.

  1. Keep the Faith is even funnier than Have a Little Faith, the first book. You may even wet yourself reading it, or cry with tears of laughter. You have been warned (but it’s totally worth it).
  1. Faith. Do I need to say anymore? Faith is possibly one of my favourite characters ever – can we please be best friends?
  1. Keep the Faith is incredibly easy to slip into. It doesn’t matter if you can’t remember much of what went down in Have a Little Faith, you will remember once you pick Keep the Faith back up.
  1. Keep the Faith is very true to UK teenage life. I can connect with Faith and her friends because they are so realistic and Harper has managed to capture all the aspects of being a teenager perfectly and write them into Keep the Faith.
  1. It’s a relatively short book, but a lot is packed in. I read it within an evening, and it was definitely an evening well spent!
  1. This is the perfect book to pick up if you want to escape your normal life and be transported somewhere else. You’ll forget all about your actual life!
  1. ETHAN. Finn. ETHAN!!! (Did I mention Ethan?)

I definitely think you should go out and buy Keep the Faith as soon as it’s released. If you haven’t read Have a Little Faith yet, I think you need to read it right away. The books are now right up there on my favourites list and I can’t help but shove them at everyone I see. They’re perfect for everyone!

Book Review

REVIEW: We Were Liars by E. Lockhart

This review is being written five minutes after finishing We Were Liars, so please excuse my thoughts which will probably be all over the place and incoherent. This book is absolutely crazy.

I should probably first of all mention that this book was a 3.5 star read for the majority of the book, but I can’t rate it anything but 5 stars after finishing because OMG. It blew me away!

Here are some reasons you should read We Were Liars:

  1. Family politics mean a really interesting read, and there is a lot of it in the Sinclair family.
  2. It’s VERY different to anything you’d usually read.
  3. The hype? It’s for good reason. This book is awesome!
  4. TWISTS, MAN. THOSE TWISTS MESSED WITH MY HEAD.

I don’t want to give anything away, because there’s a lot I could reveal. I feel as if any tiny thing I reveal could be classed as a spoiler of epic proportions so I should probably just say – READ WE WERE LIARS! It isn’t everyone’s type of book and I know not everyone has enjoyed it, but give it a chance and I think you’ll love it.

I think one of the most appealing things about We Were Liars is I don’t think there’s another book even remotely similar to it out there at the moment. You can pick it up knowing you won’t have read anything quite like it before.

If you like your mental state, read We Were Liars. Nobody is supposed to be sane!

Book Review

REVIEW: The Good Luck of Right Now by Matthew Quick

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I have very mixed feelings on this novel – parts I loved, other parts I thought were good but they just didn’t enthral me as much as I hoped. Nevertheless, The Good Luck of Right Now is a brilliant novel from the equally brilliant Matthew Quick, author of The Silver Linings Playbook.

Bartholomew Neil is middle-aged and has spent the past years looking after his sick mother. The novel starts after her death and we find Bartholomew writing letters to actor Richard Gere after finding a form letter from him in his mother’s underwear drawer.

Quick’s novels never fail to make me think – I can’t help but sit back in awe and think, ‘Wow!’ This book really is an emotional rollercoaster – I laughed, I smiled, I was sad alongside the characters: I felt like I really lived this story.

The main character, Bartholomew, had my complete affection throughout. He was grieving and so much was going on in his life; he was suddenly thrust into this big, uncomfortable world and that can be scary. I just wanted to give him a big hug!

The secondary characters, although not many of them, became very familiar and really helped the story along. I loved Max and ‘the Girlbrarian’ and Wendy too, and how they were with Bartholomew. There were such a variety of different characters – it was hard not to feel invested in the story.

I feel like there wasn’t so much a plot as a journey. From start to finish, we see Bartholomew travel, metaphorically, and his character develop. It was a very special journey to be a part of.

I did, however, find some parts quite predictable, which lowered the rating for me. Maybe that’s just me, and this shouldn’t deter you from reading it. I think because there is so little plot, this wasn’t such a big thing as it could have been, but the predictability did spoil the reading experience for me a bit.

I put down The Good Luck of Right Now feeling satisfied with the story and where it went, and all its different components. If you’re looking to read something a bit different, this is the book for you.

Book Review

REVIEW: The Break-Up Artist by Philip Siegel

The Break-Up Artist immediately attracted me when I heard about it because I don’t think I’ve read a novel with the same concept before, and I wasn’t disappointed. It was original, and lots of fun.

The Break-Up Artist, written in first person, is centred on the life of Becca, an American student who, anonymously, gets contracted to break up couples. Becca is a sceptic and knows the damage love can do: her own sister was jilted at the altar and now lives in a constant dejected state. When Becca is asked to break up the school’s power couple, Huxley and Steve, she knows it won’t be easy, but these things come at a price…

The novel started out good, but then it got even better. Siegel has crafted Becca’s voice so well and made it both realistic and believable. Let me tell you, it isn’t easy to write a teenage girl’s voice, but Siegel pulled it off flawlessly. Becca could be viewed as an unlikable character because of what she does, but instead I found myself sympathising with her and it was obvious to see why she was the way she was.

I really liked the contrast between Becca and her friend Val, who was desperate for a boyfriend. Their different emotions were really nice to see and how they treated one another because of them. I also really liked how all of the girls felt as if one of the most important things was to get a boyfriend because I know many people who feel the same way and I think it was good to address the fact that, actually, it’s not important at all.

The Break-Up Artist is a great example of a contemporary novel pulled off really well. It conjured up vivid images and it was easy to imagine yourself in Becca’s shoes.

Diane, Becca’s sister, also had a clear character arc that ran alongside the main plot. Siegel slowly fed us information about her past and it came together nicely at the end.

If you’re a fan of contemporary fiction, you should definitely read The Break-Up Artist. You’re in for a treat!

Book Review

REVIEW: Red by Alison Cherry

Red was absolutely brilliant, and I haven’t read a book that was so much fun in a long time.

Scarletville is a sanctuary where people with red hair flock to. Felicity St John has it all – a popular red-headed boyfriend, brilliant red-headed friends, and she’s set to follow in her mother’s footsteps and win the prestigious Miss Scarlet pageant. The only problem is, Felicity has a secret – she’s not actually redheaded. And in Scarletville, blondes need not apply.

Writing this review has brought back the total awesomeness of Red. I’m so, so glad I decided to read it because it was exactly what I needed.

The originality of Red was brilliant. Cherry has taken the ‘you’re ginger and so you’re stupid’ stereotype and flipped it on its head. I think it’s a genius idea!

The protagonist, Felicity, was so awesome. I really loved her and found her easy to get to know and so interesting. It must be so hard having to conceal such a big secret from the whole town, with people shunning you if they found out the truth. It was fascinating to see the depths Felicity was willing to go to make sure nobody found out.

I think one of the questions I was thinking to myself when reading Red was: What does popularity mean? In Scarletville, the colour of your hair determines where you are in the social hierarchy, but it’s not hard to look past this and see an underlying message. Most people will know what it’s like to not fit in and I think Red highlighted this in non-obvious ways, which I thought was a great change.

The plot ambled along, allowing the reader to become invested in the characters and storyline. I feel as if it was paced perfectly, with not a boring moment. I’m glad it’s a standalone because everything was tied up perfectly at the end and I was left satisfied. We’re in need of lots more brilliant standalones!

I really enjoyed Red and would highly recommend it. It contains everything I want in a good book.

Book Review

REVIEW: Amy & Matthew by Cammie McGovern

You know a novel is truly flawless when you feel as if it’s natural; the words flow into one and you are witnessing the events through the characters’ eyes without fault. That’s how I felt when reading Amy & Matthew.

One of the easiest ways to describe Amy & Matthew is to quote from the text itself: ‘there were many ways to be a freak. Amy had no choice, but other people did. If you worked hard and concentrated, you could hide your freakish thoughts.’ Amy has cerebral palsy, which limits her communication and movement. It’s her senior year and she decides she’s going to replace the aides who usually help her with students. Step in five peer helpers. Matthew has noticed Amy since they were young and so offers to help. The thing is, Matthew has his own problems to battle. For fans of Eleanor & Park and The Perks of Being a Wallflower, Amy & Matthew will blow you away.

I think I fell in love with this novel from the first page. It was understanding and meaningful and it had me completely hooked. I can tell this book will touch a lot of people once released, just as it touched me. I was wary before I started reading it, I must admit. Books dealing with such subjects are becoming ever popular (and for good reason) but there is a certain atmosphere surrounding them that isn’t needed. As it’s only a recently emerging trend, it can always be worrying beforehand; you never really know what to expect. I didn’t need to be worried though, because I loved Amy & Matthew.

The thing I loved most about this book was it wasn’t your typical romance book. From the title you would expect it, but it’s really not. To call it a romance novel would be a dishonour because it’s so much more than that. It’s the blooming friendship between two people as they discover themselves at the same time and explore the changes of the world around them; it’s the differences between the two and how they bridge the gap. In two words: truly stunning.

I don’t want to talk too much about both Amy and Matthew because I think the brilliant thing about this book is discovering their personalities and hidden depths for yourself. I thought I knew who they both were but then things would happen and I had to reassess. It was such a refreshing way to read because you don’t often get that.

Simply, you should go out and buy Amy & Matthew straight away. It challenges preconceived notions and will blow you away.